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Shop Item of the Month 2014

December 2014

Radical Supporter gift set

‘Looking for something different? Buy a loved one the opportunity to become a Radical Supporter of the museum. As a Supporter they will be able to enjoy a range of benefits for a year including: invitations to all museum exhibition Private Views for themselves and a guest; a copy of the museum’s annual Review; regular updates through e-newsletters; 10% discount in the shop and The Left Bank cafe bar – all for £30 for one year’s membership. When purchased in the shop this gift offer also includes a free gift-wrapped PHM mug, PHM badge and PHM poster.’Liane Johnson, Commercial Income Officer

£30

November 2014

A Land Fit For Heroes range

‘Looking at the collection of World War I products, aptly titled ‘A Land Fit For Heroes range’ after our current changing exhibition of the same name, we can see some lovely parallels with the themes of the displays. Emphasising the impact of the war on Britain, the products depict the now iconic images of World War I propaganda posters and slogans, reminding us of the dramatic changes on home life through creatively inspired works of art.
This range not only offers possibilities for small stocking fillers but also helps to serve a practical purpose as we found when a lady bought several ‘Memorabilia Packs’ to help her children’s school assignments, offering replica documents and a real insight into life of the ordinary man at such an extraordinary time.’Liz Thorpe, Learning Assistant

Various prices

October 2014

Suffragette range

‘This range connects perfectly to our museum as the ‘home of ideas worth fighting for’. The suffragettes were fighting for ‘Votes for Women’ using an incredibly strong brand that not only looks great on these items but also has a strong and powerful message. The colours purple, green and white were used on everything from tea cups and saucers to banners, badges and sashes in the early 1900s – and they feature strongly on the tea towels, coasters, pin badges and other items in our shop.
The museum has lots of material on display related to ‘Votes for Women’ and is taking the lead with the Wonder Women programme which is now counting down to 100 years since women had the (partial) vote for the first time at the end of World War I in 1918.’Katy Archer, Director

Various prices

September 2014

Women Vote Labour – For The Children’s Sake poster

‘This beautiful Labour Party poster is from 1929, the year which saw the first general election where women had equal voting rights. The image was designed to directly appeal to these new women voters. The poster features fantastic artwork by Thomas Henry who is perhaps most famous for his iconic illustrations for the Just William books. This poster is just one of the many visually stunning posters you can find on our main galleries.’Mark Wilson, Front of House Co-ordinator

£4

August 2014

The Casualties of Peterloo by Michael Bush

‘On 16 August 1819, an event occurred on the streets of Manchester which changed the course of history. That event was the meeting at St Peter’s Field, the aftermath of which has come to be known as the ‘Peterloo Massacre’.
Professor Bush approaches that fateful day 195 years ago by correlating the eight casualty lists drawn up at the time to extrapolate a range of interesting conclusions. He looks at who was injured and how, analyses them by age and sex and focuses on the sections of the crowd who suffered disproportionately whilst also investigating the motives for their attack.
Central to this excellent book is the full list of the 654 injured and the 18 who died, with comments about them taken from all eight compensation lists. This book will be of great interest to anyone who studies social, political or family history who wants to know more about Manchester’s turbulent past. It will also interest those who are keen to discover where the long road to democracy began.’Pete Yearsley, Gallery Assistant

£15

If you want to learn more about the Peterloo Massacre you can find our Peterloo displays in Main Gallery One.

July 2014

Woody Guthrie, American Radical by Will Kaufman

‘Woody Guthrie, American Radical profiles the life of a singer and songwriter who committed his life to the radical struggle. Author Will Kaufman traces Guthrie’s political awakening and his activism through the Great Depression, World War II and the civil rights movement. Kaufman uses previously unseen archive material such as letters, lyrics and photographs to create a picture of not only a prolific songwriter and singer, but also a man born of and deeply committed to the working class struggle for a better life.’Jon Haynes, Gallery Assistant

£19.99

June 2014

The First World War In Pictures

‘This book contains some amazing images from ‘The Great War’ with over 300 pages of photographs. Many of the images are thought provoking and this book acts as a great starting point for anyone with an interest in World War I. The pictures run chronologically and are all accompanied by the background stories depicted in the image. This is just one of our Ammonite Press series of books with World War II In Pictures also available. Our latest changing exhibition A Land Fit For Heroes focuses on World War I and runs until Sunday 1 February 2015.’Colin Smith, Gallery Assistant

£7.99

May 2014

The Frock-Coated Communist by Tristram Hunt

‘This fine biography on Friedrich Engels is both wonderfully written and consistently engaging, taking a look at one of the more underrated figures in history. Born in Prussia in 1820, Engels did military service in Berlin before coming to work for the family business in Manchester. Leading a double life as capitalist and communist, he wrote his classic Condition of the Working Class in England (also available in the PHM shop) in 1844 and began a lifelong working partnership with Karl Marx. After their Communist Manifesto in 1848, Engels supported Marx in London as his friend worked on Das Kapital. This hugely enjoyable biography reveals a man of contradiction, conviction and exuberance, whose ideas are resonating once again.’Ed Lambert, Gallery Assistant

£14.99

The Frock-Coated Communist is written by Labour MP and historian Tristram Hunt who officially unveiled our exhibition A Land Fit for Heroes, open from Saturday 24 May 2014, running until Sunday 1 February 2015.

April 2014

Alain Grée range

‘These classic illustrations bring back strong memories of my own childhood in the 70s, but I think the images have a strong timeless quality and the small attention to detail in them will delight both young and old. The range includes books, crayons, pencils and height charts. Over Easter spend £5 or more on any children’s items and receive a free Alain Grée cotton bag.’Anthony Dillon, Senior Gallery Assistant (Buildings)

Various prices

March 2014

Votes for Women playing cards

‘I love our suffragette playing cards for so many reasons. They celebrate individuals such as Annie Kenney from Oldham and Mary Gawforth from Manchester as well as the well known leaders of the movement. What really catches the eye though, is the artistic quality of the images. The enamelled pendant by Ernestine Mills is stunning and the Appeal of Womanhood postcard is lovely. As well as photographs of key events, the banners portrayed are unforgettable – the actresses’ Franchise League banner is beautiful. The internationalism of the movement is reflected on cards such as that showing the Indian suffragists. All in all, you can learn lots about suffrage without making an effort, and the visual images will give real pleasure and stay with you.’Mary Kirrane, Volunteer

£4.50

February 2014

The Ragged Trousered Philanthropists by Robert Tressell

‘This month marks the 113th anniversary of Robert Noonan’s death and it is only fitting that our Item of the Month should go to his one and only novel, The Ragged Trousered Philanthropists. The book provides a comprehensive picture of social, political, economic and cultural life in Britain at a time when socialism was beginning to gain ground. Noonan himself was a member of the Social Democratic Foundation (SDF) and wrote under the pseudonym Robert Tressell for fear the socialist views within this book would have him blacklisted. He sadly died before the novel went to print but it has long since been honoured by the Trade Union movement and as Tony Benn once claimed ‘it is a torch to pass from generation to generation’. If you would like to learn more about the SDF, please visit our Early Socialists section in Main Gallery One.’Mike Prescott, Senior Gallery Assistant (Retail)

£9.99

January 2014

Homage to Catalonia by George Orwell

‘Fascinating insight into the Spanish Civil War written by the English volunteer Eric Blair (George Orwell). Interesting for anyone wishing to understand the war in Spain, or European Politics of the 1930s in general. Don’t forget to check out our Spanish Civil War section in Main Gallery One to see a letter written by Orwell regarding his time in Barcelona, and a POUM militia cap, the unit Orwell served with.’Andy Hoyle, Gallery Assistant